Tiffany Sues Costco Over Fake Engagement Rings

Photo: Tiffany & Co.

Tiffany & Co. filed a lawsuit against Costco yesterday (ironically) on Valentine's Day in Federal District Court in Manhattan over the sale of counterfeit engagement rings being sold under Tiffany's name. The suit claims Costco infringed on the jeweler's trademark, violated counterfeiting laws and asks for the profits Costco received from the sale of fake rings as well as punitive damages if $2 million per infringement. The suit also seeks to find out exactly how many customers were defrauded by purchasing the fake rings.

Tiffany discovered that Costco was selling fakes after a customer in Huntington Beach, CA complained to Tiffany November of last year that she was disappointed Tiffany allowed their rings to be sold at Costco. Tiffany then bought one of the rings and determined it was counterfeit since it didn't contain a microscopic laser inscription they put in all their diamonds. Further, the band did not contain the Tiffany & Co. engraving.


Tiffany's cheapest engagement rings sell for $11,000 for one-carat whereas Costco was selling the rings for $6,400.

Tiffany's lawyer, Jeffrey Mitchell of Dickstein Shapiro LLP, stated "When we discovered this was not a one-time rogue event at one store, we knew we had a big problem that had to be dealt with."

The case is Tiffany & Company and Tiffany (NJ) LLC v. Costco Wholesale Corp, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, 13-1041

Read More:
WSJ: Tiffany Sues Costco Over Alleged Fake Rings
NY Times: Tiffany Rings at Costco? Not Now, or Ever, the Jeweler Says